Classroom Committee Meeting 09/09/2018 20:00 - Elections

Education
#1

Elections for Committee Chairpersons are earlier this year.

Classroom will have it’s meeting on Sept 9th, 8pm*.
*Time changed to 8pm in edit

Classroom has various responsibilities central to the mission of the Dallas MakerSpace - Education. These duties are:

  1. Facilities. Ensure the Classrooms meet the needs of both Teachers and Students for a rich learning experience.
    Some of items include
  • Chairs & tables
  • Electronics: Monitors, sound, remotes
  • Lighting
  • Climate Control
  • Cleanliness
  1. Scheduling of Classes and information about classes, enrollment, Teacher class information, cancellations. Teacher pay, class fees. Reporting needs for Finance, Committees, Teachers, and students. This is managed at some level by the Calendar software.
  2. Teacher recruitment, preparation, encouragement, training. Gather and provide feedback. Thank.
  3. Student guidance (helping identify which classes to take for what purpose). Gather feedback.

Many of these duties are new to Classroom as we grow our focus on Education.

Please consider running for Chair, Vice Chair, or be a volunteer if you share a passion for this great team.

https://calendar.dallasmakerspace.org/events/view/7412

2 Likes
#2

I will run for another term. I will gladly step aside and still volunteer if a person with a greater passion for this mission wishes to take lead.

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#3

I hereby throw my hat into the ring for Classroom chair.

My platform includes:

  • Expansion will be challenging. The chair needs to have a vision for what we will be afterward and be a good steward of our limited funds.
  • I intend to take an active role in making the calendar suit our needs better. That includes deciding what changes in functionality are needed, seeing that the code is modified and teaching classes on the use of the calendar.
  • I like Old House BBQ Sundays. Committee meetings will not be Sunday evening.
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#4

I’ll edit the time to 8pm Sunday if that better meets your schedule.

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#5

I am withdrawing my candidacy for Classroom Chair.

I am staying with my brother as he continues to deal with a medical problem. It is not looking to be resolved by the time the term begins. It is not fair to you for me to take on an obligation I cannot fulfill.

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#6

Hope your brother’s condition improves. Thanks Bill!

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#7

I hate to hear that Bill, my thoughts and prayers are with y all

Now folks Stop it, Too many folks I know and familye members are getting sick

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#8

I will not be at the meeting tomorrow.

These are the thoughts I would have brought:

Our main challenge in the next six months is outfitting the new classrooms. Ideally, new classrooms can be made usable shortly after they become available to us.

We have plenty of chairs to go around though we may have to shuffle them around some for larger than usual attendences. We will need more tables as we currently have barely enough. The goal is not to have to move tables between rooms often as that is unnecessary work which has a tendency to dent the walls. New tables should be foldable for storage.

The new lobby classroom in #102 will need one or two monitors and some tables. Until we can actually see the room, we cannot say whether one larger monitor is better or two smaller ones. There is a window on the south wall of that room, so lightproofing may be an issue. If there is not enough money in our budget, we may have to temporarily move one of the big monitors over from the Interactive Classroom.

We should move the spare 60" monitor from the Interactive Classroom to either the current Galley or the Creative Arts room. We should buy a new monitor of similar size for the other.

Tables stationed in the current Galley should be water-resistant. Our current plastic tables will be good there.

In the likely event that there is no money available to divide the current Creative Arts studio into two separate rooms, the Current 3D Fab room will become our computer classroom and laboratory. That room is rather small, but it will be usable. We should move the 50" monitor from the crash cart in the Conference Room to replace the one (also 50") 3D Fab currently has. Our 18" wide tables are somewhat easy to tip over, so we should look into 24" wide ones for a more semi-permanent installation.

The idea for the crash cart was that it is available to take to a committee area to use for teaching a class. It has been a very underutilized resource we maybe should not bother keeping.

Revenue sources.

The committee should encourage teachers to direct some honorarium money to the committee for outfitting the new classrooms. We all benefit from that investment.

I still believe we should pursue selling naming rights to the classrooms though the task is now more difficult with Talk going private. How can we convince potential benefactors that the classrooms are a significant part of our culture? Individual threads can be made visible outside of the gravitational well, but no telling how long that wormhole will be allowed to remain open.

4 Likes
How much do you know about current gen projectors?
#9

Hope he has a speedy recovery. Good to have siblings that care.

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#10

Keeping you and your brother in my thoughts and prayers

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#11

What is the result of the election? Thanks.

#12

I was elected to Chair with 53 votes.
Dick Stacey has volunteered to serve as Vice Chair. He has the meeting minutes. We should be able to post them tomorrow.

1 Like